Hello hello!
Recently I asked Niblers what you would most like me to create next.
I’m going to come back to telling you about the outcome of the survey in an upcoming blogpost. But one of the messages which came through loud and clear is that people still want recipes. And so do I – I’m always going to be creating delicious food, and I’m happy to keep sharing it. This recipe is an adaptation of the Birdseed Bites recipe which I posted earlier this year. I wanted to try making that recipe with a different nut butter (i.e., not peanut), and almost had a coronary when I saw what a decent-sized jar of almond or cashew butter was going to set me back by. So I threw a bag of nuts in the food processor, made us all a little deafer in the household while it spun its way to nut buttery goodness, and then started throwing in other ingredients. Since then I’ve made it with various types of nuts and a whole host of different flavourings, and this recipe has turned out to be a total keeper.
If you’re looking for something to make in around 20 minutes, which provides snacks which are taste great, give a burst of energy in a tiny bite, and are guaranteed to be a hit with adults and children alike – this is for you, Snackman/woman.
August may seem to early to announce the winner of Snack of the Year 2016, but the results are in already:
Chocolate Chunk Cashew Bites
Ingredients
4 cups unsalted cashews
1/4 cup quality cocoa (or cacao powder)
1 generous scoop protein powder (see notes)
1/4 cup rice bran syrup (or maple syrup)
Flavour options: 2 tablespoons freeze-dried raspberry powder OR 10-15 drops dōTERRA oils tea blend (combination of lime, ginger, grapefruit and lemongrass) OR 1/2 – 1 teaspoon each dried ginger and cinnamon and a pinch of cardamom
100 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
Topping options: shredded coconut OR granola OR buckwheat groats OR Loving Earth Buckinis
Instructions
Line a slice tray (18 x 28cm) with baking paper.
Place nuts in a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. Depending on the stamina of your food processor, this may take some time. (Consider stopping and scraping down the sides of the food processor bowl every minute or so, allowing it to take breaks and maybe even sending it on a brief snorkeling interlude to the Cook Islands if it is weary). Alternatively you can skip this step and use commercial nut butter – you need approximately 2 cups of nut butter to replace the 4 cups of nuts.
Once nut butter is smooth, add cacao/cocoa powder, protein powder, rice bran/maple syrup and your chosen flavouring. Mix together in food processor until mixture reaches a biscuit-dough consistency which holds together when pressed into a ball. Add a small amount of warm water to mixture if too dry, or a small amount of desiccated flour/coconut flour if too moist (it’s more likely to create a moist mixture if you used commercial nut butter). Remove from food processor and mix through the chopped dark chocolate
Press very firmly into the tray to a thickness of approximately 1 cm, using your hands. It’s ok if it seems a little crumbly – just be assertive when pressing it in and it will solidify with chilling. This amount of mixture may not fill the entire tray. Refrigerate until set and cut into small bites. If desired, sprinkle one of the garnish options on top.
Must be kept refrigerated. Makes 30 – 40 pieces.
Notes
I use Lifestream Essential Protein Natural Vanilla flavour for the protein powder – if you don’t have protein powder, you can use approximately 2 – 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut or coconut flour in it’s place.
I was lucky enough to receive some samples of dōTERRA oils and oil blends from the lovely Chantal Roelofs. Thank you Chantal – I am well and truly hooked!
(Nobody is paying me to advertise these products – they just happen to be ones which I really really like!)
Want more super-easy, super-tasty plant-based snack recipes? If you like what you see above, you’ll be giddy at the sight of the Feeling Peckish ebook.
If you try out today’s recipe, let me know in the comments – what’s your very favourite flavour option for Chocolate Chunk Cashew Bites? Feel free to come up with something new and revolutionary!
